Abstract
Aviculture
a Winner at
CITES Meeting
Most aviculturists expected the worst from the 8th Conference
of the Parties to CITES, the Convention on International
Trade in Endangered Species, which was held in Kyoto, Japan
in early March. After the last meeting in Switzerland in 1989,
animal rights groups vowed to push for a total ban on trade in
all wild-caught birds. Fortunately for AFA members, nearly all
of the resolutions in Kyoto that would have seriously curtailed
bird-keeping were defeated. This outcome did not reflect
widespread support for captive breeding of birds, but rather
came from a general attitude favoring sustainable utilization
instead of strict preservation of wildlife. Serious concerns still
remain about the high mortality associated with transport of
wild-caught birds and will no doubt lead to renewed calls for
trade restrictions and bans at the next CITES meeting to be
held in the United States in 1994.
AFA, one of over 150 non-government organizations
(NGOs) in Kyoto, was represented by Val Clear and myself.
There is an unwritten but definite caste system in effect at
CITES meetings. Delegates from the richest nations and members
of the CITES Secretariat (the bureaucracy that enforces
the treaty) are at the top of the pyramid, representatives from
less-developed countries and from large international NGOs
such as World Wildlife Fund (WWF) come next, and relatively
small groups perceived as representing special interests, such
as AFA, are at the bottom. Seniority also plays a role: the more
previous CITES meetings you have attended, the more you are
listened to. Despite this arrangement, it is possible for representatives
of a small NGO to have some influence by talking
one-on-one with individual delegates and by becoming allied
with better-known groups.